Assuming the umpires know all of the rules all of the time?
Top of the 9th, bases loaded, on the road, 2 strikes. Hip, Hip, remember too close to take?
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
A Season of Milestones
As another regular season grinds toward an anticlimactic finish (with the current playoff format can there be any other kind) lets reflect on several of the highlights that gripped or missed our attention for the past five months.
Derek Jeter reaches 3,000 hits - and keeps on rolling. An enormous individual achievement, the first by a Yankee, consuming gallons of media ink, and topped off by a home run. What a script.
An even rarer event - Jim Tome's 600th home run, ignored by most, a testament to hard work, dedication, preparation, longevity, and deserving of first round selection to Cooperstown.
And the rarest of all, Omar Vizquel becomes the first active player to cash a social security check.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Jeter Love
If Derek Jeter was a One-Armed Bandit he'd be paying off big time. He's so hot he's wearing asbestos batting gloves. Not bad for an over the hill, are-the Yankees-a-better-team-without-Jeter-in-the-lineup, old fogey. High fives to Annie-O for sticking with him through it all. (But don't forget, Annie, that you and I know something about Derek that no one else knows.)
Figure out how to beat Boston, win the division, and the playoffs, and the Series (look, even if you just get to the Series that will be a relief for everyone). Is that really too much to ask?
In other baseball news...
Over to you Chad
NOW, HE SAYS HE'S NOT GOING AT ALL
** Jorge Posada says he's definitely going to play next year. You know Girardi would not be looking forward to another year of trying to treat a guy who's over the hill with the respect he deserves because of his history. But, who knows? Maybe Jorge is talking about the Pioneer Independent League.
** AJ Burnett finally won a game in August, pitching into the 6th inning before Boone Logan got the final out in that inning, followed by the "Three Amigos," Soriano, Robertson and Rivera.
** The Yes announcers mentioned the other relievers last night. Ayala, Wade and now Boone are all pitching very well, which may change Girardi's & Rothschild's thinking: "If we can just get 3 good innings from our starter..."
** A typical Melky Cabrera game last night. A couple of line drives at the plate, a strong throw from the outfield, and a strange play on a fly ball. Actually, he really wasn't at fault on the fly ball, it was really a slicing line drive that most centerfielders would've had trouble with.
** You have to give credit to the Royals. Down 5-3 in the 6th inning , and they were still trying to steal bases. Yankee catcher Russ Martin nailed three of them and that's something with AJ pitching. He's very slow to the plate.
** Congratulations to Jim Thome on hitting his 600th career home run. He did it in typical Thome style: No fanfare, no drag-out countdown and no cheapie shots. This guy is a definite Hall of Famer.
** The ESPN Sports Reporters made a big deal out of the "old-fashioned hot pennant race" in the AL West between Texas and the Angels. You can't always predict these things accurately and they didn't. Since Saturday, the Angels have lost three games in the standings and are now 5 games out. It's not over, they still have two games left against Texas this week and they close out the season against them.
** On the other hand, Detroit has lost two more games in the standings and are now only two games in front of Cleveland.
** This is surprising: the Twins trades Delmond Young to their AL Central conference rival, the Tigers. You don't see that very often and NEVER in the AL East.
** The Giants are 2 1/2 games out in the NL West, and without any offense, that's going to be very, very difficult to make up.
** The Red Sox play a day-night double header against Tampa Bay today at Fenway. A bad day today could have Theo Epstein chewing his fingernails down to the first knuckle.
***THEY SAID IT***
"The Lake County Fielders, whose announcer quit during a game recently, had to cancel a game in the second inning because they didn't have enough baseballs. L.A. Dodger fans, pay attention — this is your future" --Brad Dickson
"An Arizona man accidentally shot himself in the penis with his girlfriend's small pink handgun. Doctors say he'll be shooting blanks from now on." -- Jerry Perisho
"Veteran Basketball Hall of Fame observers say they've never seen such suspense surrounding a player's induction. But really, who cares whether Dennis Rodman goes in wearing a Pistons or Bulls wedding gown?" -- Dwight Perry
"During the PGA first round Thursday, Tiger Woods spent so much time in the sand and the water, his next gig could be an audition for one of those Corona beer on the beach commercials." -- Janice Hough
CP-
** AJ Burnett finally won a game in August, pitching into the 6th inning before Boone Logan got the final out in that inning, followed by the "Three Amigos," Soriano, Robertson and Rivera.
** The Yes announcers mentioned the other relievers last night. Ayala, Wade and now Boone are all pitching very well, which may change Girardi's & Rothschild's thinking: "If we can just get 3 good innings from our starter..."
** A typical Melky Cabrera game last night. A couple of line drives at the plate, a strong throw from the outfield, and a strange play on a fly ball. Actually, he really wasn't at fault on the fly ball, it was really a slicing line drive that most centerfielders would've had trouble with.
** You have to give credit to the Royals. Down 5-3 in the 6th inning , and they were still trying to steal bases. Yankee catcher Russ Martin nailed three of them and that's something with AJ pitching. He's very slow to the plate.
** Congratulations to Jim Thome on hitting his 600th career home run. He did it in typical Thome style: No fanfare, no drag-out countdown and no cheapie shots. This guy is a definite Hall of Famer.
** The ESPN Sports Reporters made a big deal out of the "old-fashioned hot pennant race" in the AL West between Texas and the Angels. You can't always predict these things accurately and they didn't. Since Saturday, the Angels have lost three games in the standings and are now 5 games out. It's not over, they still have two games left against Texas this week and they close out the season against them.
** On the other hand, Detroit has lost two more games in the standings and are now only two games in front of Cleveland.
** This is surprising: the Twins trades Delmond Young to their AL Central conference rival, the Tigers. You don't see that very often and NEVER in the AL East.
** The Giants are 2 1/2 games out in the NL West, and without any offense, that's going to be very, very difficult to make up.
** The Red Sox play a day-night double header against Tampa Bay today at Fenway. A bad day today could have Theo Epstein chewing his fingernails down to the first knuckle.
***THEY SAID IT***
"The Lake County Fielders, whose announcer quit during a game recently, had to cancel a game in the second inning because they didn't have enough baseballs. L.A. Dodger fans, pay attention — this is your future" --Brad Dickson
"An Arizona man accidentally shot himself in the penis with his girlfriend's small pink handgun. Doctors say he'll be shooting blanks from now on." -- Jerry Perisho
"Veteran Basketball Hall of Fame observers say they've never seen such suspense surrounding a player's induction. But really, who cares whether Dennis Rodman goes in wearing a Pistons or Bulls wedding gown?" -- Dwight Perry
"During the PGA first round Thursday, Tiger Woods spent so much time in the sand and the water, his next gig could be an audition for one of those Corona beer on the beach commercials." -- Janice Hough
CP-
Sunday, August 14, 2011
HE'S NOT GOING QUIETLY
***YANKS WIN 9-2***
Playing for the first time in a week, Jorge Posada pounded out a single, a double and a grand slam home run yesterday, driving in 6 of the Yanks 9 runs. There have been many rumors about Jorge's future, some as dire as being released in September, but any decision of that nature, just got a little tougher.
Phil Hughes continued to impress, throwing 6 strong innings. What helped the most was his aggressiveness, going right at the hitters instead of nibbling around and getting into hitters counts. AJ Burnett goes today in their battle for the last spot in the rotation. I still think AJ will get it regardless of his effectiveness today, because of his contract and the fact that Hughes is a proven commodity out of the bullpen.
Good thing the Yanks did well yesterday, because A-Rod went 0-3 down in Florida. No highlights there.
***OTHER NEWS***
Boston lost (hurrah!) helped by the strong arm of Ichiro Suzuki, who threw out Jacob Ellsbury at the plate as he tried to score the tying run.
Curtis Granderson also homered for the Yanks, tying Jose Bautista for the Major League lead with 33. He also leads the Majors in RBIs and runs scored.
Dan Uggla went 2 for 3 with a homer yesterday to raise his hitting streak to 33 in a row...and raise his average up to .233.
This is some kind of epidemic. Tim Stauffer of the San Diego Padres gave up five home runs yesterday. So what was HIS reaction? He didn't clean out his locker but the manager told him to mop the clubhouse floor and start the laundry. He thought "mop-up man" meant pitching in blow-out games. Not always.
Yesterday, Janice Hough made this comment:
"Pittsburgh Pirates came into SF with 10 game losing streak. And then the Florida Marlins had 7 game losing streak. How do you spell relief? G-I-A-N-T-S-H-I-T-T-I-N-G."
I wrote to her and said she should remove the hyphen between the 'T' and the 'S'. She wrote back and said I wasn't the only one who suggested that.
***THEY SAID IT***
I've always felt kind of guilty and lazy quoting other people because they're funnier, but I've had a number of people (those with good taste) say they like it, so I'll continue.
"Barry Zito apparently re-injured his right foot in a rehab start in Fresno. No word on which member of the San Francisco Giants management allegedly put the rusty nail on the mound." -- Janice Hough
"The town of Woodward, Okla., is still abuzz after a woman stripped naked during this year's putting contest. Selling tickets to next year's charity tournament at Boiling Springs Golf Course shouldn't be a problem." -- Dwight Perry (I'll be taking orders- CP)
"Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer decided to end its commercial relationship with Tiger Woods. Talk about a time out." -- RJ Currie
"Alex Rodriguez and high-stakes poker games? Baseball officials reportedly became suspicious when he asked to be traded to the Cards." -- Dwight Perry
"The Baltimore Ravens have signed running back Ricky Williams. He’s looking forward to playing on real grass. The stuff they had in Miami was mixed with oregano." -- Alan Ray
It ain't sports, but it's funny:
"Aretha Franklin got out of a parking ticket in New York by singing to a meter maid. In a related story, Michael Bolton tried the same thing and he's now serving life." -- Conan O'Brien
CP-
Playing for the first time in a week, Jorge Posada pounded out a single, a double and a grand slam home run yesterday, driving in 6 of the Yanks 9 runs. There have been many rumors about Jorge's future, some as dire as being released in September, but any decision of that nature, just got a little tougher.
Phil Hughes continued to impress, throwing 6 strong innings. What helped the most was his aggressiveness, going right at the hitters instead of nibbling around and getting into hitters counts. AJ Burnett goes today in their battle for the last spot in the rotation. I still think AJ will get it regardless of his effectiveness today, because of his contract and the fact that Hughes is a proven commodity out of the bullpen.
Good thing the Yanks did well yesterday, because A-Rod went 0-3 down in Florida. No highlights there.
***OTHER NEWS***
Boston lost (hurrah!) helped by the strong arm of Ichiro Suzuki, who threw out Jacob Ellsbury at the plate as he tried to score the tying run.
Curtis Granderson also homered for the Yanks, tying Jose Bautista for the Major League lead with 33. He also leads the Majors in RBIs and runs scored.
Dan Uggla went 2 for 3 with a homer yesterday to raise his hitting streak to 33 in a row...and raise his average up to .233.
This is some kind of epidemic. Tim Stauffer of the San Diego Padres gave up five home runs yesterday. So what was HIS reaction? He didn't clean out his locker but the manager told him to mop the clubhouse floor and start the laundry. He thought "mop-up man" meant pitching in blow-out games. Not always.
Yesterday, Janice Hough made this comment:
"Pittsburgh Pirates came into SF with 10 game losing streak. And then the Florida Marlins had 7 game losing streak. How do you spell relief? G-I-A-N-T-S-H-I-T-T-I-N-G."
I wrote to her and said she should remove the hyphen between the 'T' and the 'S'. She wrote back and said I wasn't the only one who suggested that.
***THEY SAID IT***
I've always felt kind of guilty and lazy quoting other people because they're funnier, but I've had a number of people (those with good taste) say they like it, so I'll continue.
"Barry Zito apparently re-injured his right foot in a rehab start in Fresno. No word on which member of the San Francisco Giants management allegedly put the rusty nail on the mound." -- Janice Hough
"The town of Woodward, Okla., is still abuzz after a woman stripped naked during this year's putting contest. Selling tickets to next year's charity tournament at Boiling Springs Golf Course shouldn't be a problem." -- Dwight Perry (I'll be taking orders- CP)
"Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer decided to end its commercial relationship with Tiger Woods. Talk about a time out." -- RJ Currie
"Alex Rodriguez and high-stakes poker games? Baseball officials reportedly became suspicious when he asked to be traded to the Cards." -- Dwight Perry
"The Baltimore Ravens have signed running back Ricky Williams. He’s looking forward to playing on real grass. The stuff they had in Miami was mixed with oregano." -- Alan Ray
It ain't sports, but it's funny:
"Aretha Franklin got out of a parking ticket in New York by singing to a meter maid. In a related story, Michael Bolton tried the same thing and he's now serving life." -- Conan O'Brien
CP-
Saturday, August 13, 2011
ONE PROBLEM - TWO RESPONSES
***THE PROBLEM***
A pitcher facing a decent hitting club gives up 5 home runs in one game. This is not something you expect out of your top-of-the-line starter, so you watch to see how he responds.
***THE RESPONSES***
CC Sabathia gave up 5 solo shots in a 5-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. His response was to fire a 97 MPH fastball past friend and former teammate, Kelly Shoppach, with a grim look on his face.
Carlos Zambrano reacted differently. He fired a fastball too close to Chipper Jones and got ejected for it. He wasn't done, though. He went into the clubhouse, cleaned out his locker and told everyone within earshot that he was retiring. Cy Young awards are unpredictable, but you have to think this will cost Carlos a few votes. Not to mention the remaining $24 million on his contract that he leaves on the table. The Yanks should have picked him up when they had the chance. This kind of tantrum would take a lot of pressure off A-Rod and his gambling problem.
***SPEAKING OF A-ROD***
Since there was nothing to cheer about in the NY/Tampa game for Yankee fans, the YES network gave at-bat updates on A-Rod's first Single-A rehab game down in Florida, even showing a replay of his home run. George Steinbrenner would be proud.
***OTHER NEWS***
The SF Giants are now two games out of first, losing the first game of a 3-game series with the last place Florida Marlins, 2-1. Considering the Giants hitting, I could probably have just given you the score and let you figure out the winner. The hitless wonders are on a pace to score 555 runs for the season, a mark 4 other teams have already passed with some 40 games left. Carlos Beltran hasn't played in four games and may be heading to the DL.
The first place Arizona Diamonbacks won behind former Yankee, Ian Kennedy, who is now 15-3.
Dan Uggla went 3 for 3 against the Cubs, running his hit streak to 32 games.
The Yankees will be choosing between Phil Hughes and AJ Burnett for the last spot in the rotation this weekend. Hughes has tons of talent and potential, Burnett has tons of money left on his contract. One of them goes to the bullpen. THIS will be interesting, especially if Hughes pitches well today.
***THEY SAID IT***
The FCC says you will soon be able to send text messages to 911. I'm sure 911 operators can't wait to get texts that say, "Being carjacked, LOL." -- Conan O'Brian
Britain's female beach volleyball champs have reportedly signed a sponsorship deal to have a bookmaker's QR code on the rear of their bikini briefs. Think it'll work? You bet your bottom dollar. -- RJ Currie
"The back of a bus in Shaoyang, China, crashed to the ground when a bump in the road caused the wheels to fall off. Raise your hand if you just thought of the Seattle Mariners' pennant hopes." -- RJ Currie
"Been a tough year for the NY Yankees, lost all 4 series vs the Red Sox. So today S&P downgraded the Yankees to the Mets" -- Jimmy Fallon
"The Pittsburgh Pirates had lost ten games in a row before beating the Giants Monday night. Maybe the only way to turn the stock market skid around is to send in the San Francisco Giants." -- Janice Hough
The Colorado Rockies lost 3-2 to the Nationals last Sunday, extending their losing streak to 16 in games played on that day of the week. Instead of "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" at Coors Field, shouldn't they be playing "Never on Sunday"? -- Dwight Perry
CP-
A pitcher facing a decent hitting club gives up 5 home runs in one game. This is not something you expect out of your top-of-the-line starter, so you watch to see how he responds.
***THE RESPONSES***
CC Sabathia gave up 5 solo shots in a 5-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. His response was to fire a 97 MPH fastball past friend and former teammate, Kelly Shoppach, with a grim look on his face.
Carlos Zambrano reacted differently. He fired a fastball too close to Chipper Jones and got ejected for it. He wasn't done, though. He went into the clubhouse, cleaned out his locker and told everyone within earshot that he was retiring. Cy Young awards are unpredictable, but you have to think this will cost Carlos a few votes. Not to mention the remaining $24 million on his contract that he leaves on the table. The Yanks should have picked him up when they had the chance. This kind of tantrum would take a lot of pressure off A-Rod and his gambling problem.
***SPEAKING OF A-ROD***
Since there was nothing to cheer about in the NY/Tampa game for Yankee fans, the YES network gave at-bat updates on A-Rod's first Single-A rehab game down in Florida, even showing a replay of his home run. George Steinbrenner would be proud.
***OTHER NEWS***
The SF Giants are now two games out of first, losing the first game of a 3-game series with the last place Florida Marlins, 2-1. Considering the Giants hitting, I could probably have just given you the score and let you figure out the winner. The hitless wonders are on a pace to score 555 runs for the season, a mark 4 other teams have already passed with some 40 games left. Carlos Beltran hasn't played in four games and may be heading to the DL.
The first place Arizona Diamonbacks won behind former Yankee, Ian Kennedy, who is now 15-3.
Dan Uggla went 3 for 3 against the Cubs, running his hit streak to 32 games.
The Yankees will be choosing between Phil Hughes and AJ Burnett for the last spot in the rotation this weekend. Hughes has tons of talent and potential, Burnett has tons of money left on his contract. One of them goes to the bullpen. THIS will be interesting, especially if Hughes pitches well today.
***THEY SAID IT***
The FCC says you will soon be able to send text messages to 911. I'm sure 911 operators can't wait to get texts that say, "Being carjacked, LOL." -- Conan O'Brian
Britain's female beach volleyball champs have reportedly signed a sponsorship deal to have a bookmaker's QR code on the rear of their bikini briefs. Think it'll work? You bet your bottom dollar. -- RJ Currie
"The back of a bus in Shaoyang, China, crashed to the ground when a bump in the road caused the wheels to fall off. Raise your hand if you just thought of the Seattle Mariners' pennant hopes." -- RJ Currie
"Been a tough year for the NY Yankees, lost all 4 series vs the Red Sox. So today S&P downgraded the Yankees to the Mets" -- Jimmy Fallon
"The Pittsburgh Pirates had lost ten games in a row before beating the Giants Monday night. Maybe the only way to turn the stock market skid around is to send in the San Francisco Giants." -- Janice Hough
The Colorado Rockies lost 3-2 to the Nationals last Sunday, extending their losing streak to 16 in games played on that day of the week. Instead of "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" at Coors Field, shouldn't they be playing "Never on Sunday"? -- Dwight Perry
CP-
Friday, August 12, 2011
IT'S NERVE-WRACKING TO SAY THE LEAST
***OH NO. NO MO'?***
Mariano Rivera has been so good for so long, that whenever the media rates closers, they don't even include Rivera anymore. Why? Because he's so far above the rest, you can't compare them to him, so it comes down to "The best of the rest."
You look at some of his stats and it's impossible to register how good he's been for so long. He's in his 15th year as the Yankees closer and in only ONE of those years did he have less than 30 saves (2002 - 28 saves). Now he's had three bad outings in a row. We've seen blips before, but you knew they were just a little bump in the road but he still looked overpowering. But recently, he's looked all too hittable. So when the Yanks try to turn games into six inning affairs, it's worthless if the ninth inning isn't lights-out, game-over.
I've never worried before - now I am.
***EXCUSE ME?***
The MVP discussion starts to become hot and heavy this time of the year, with the so-called favorite changing every few days. Adrian Gonzales seemed like a lock a month ago, then it was Jacob Ellsbury and now Curtis Granderson is being noticed. Of course, Jose Bautista has had his backers all year. This year, however, the analysts seem to favor players on winning teams, unlike past years when all they looked at were stats. I have always felt that a player on a last place team may be the best player around, but he isn't helping his team win...because they can't win. I know, I know, it's not his fault, but consider this: the media is very quick to point out that not everyone is capable of handling playing in New York or Boston, where the pressure to win is enormous. The Yanks never made a serious run at Zack Greinke from Kansas City, because they gave a lot of credence to the thought that he couldn't handle New York. Okay, let's assume the 'winning team' theory has merit and move on to another thought.
How much does defense play into your vote for MVP? Two players with basically equal stats, one a left fielder, the other a shortstop. Who is more valuable? I would think you should lean toward the shortstop. How about two third basemen with equal stats? Then defense could be influential.
But here's my point: How do you distinguish a good fielder from a bad one? I don't mean two fairly equal fielders, I mean one outstanding and one terrible one. Ah, the sabermetric advocates have the answer. After a 'few' assumptions and thousands of numbers, they have come up with a number for you: The Defensive Runs Saved statistic. Think about this one. How can they actually put a number on how many runs a fielder can "save" in a season? There has to be so many 'IFs' involved in this formula, that the first paragraph explaining it has got to have 50 of them. They claim it takes into account everything, from the type of pitchers on his team (fly ball vs. ground ball) to the size of his field in the outfield.
Steve Berthiaume, of ESPN wrote an article explaining this and even he seems to have trouble believing his own numbers: "As with any defensive metric, there is always a subjective element." Of course, with all these sabermetric numbers, they skip over this quickly and NEVER tell you what it is. This new stat has determined that Curtis Granderson is the "worst" defensive centerfielder in baseball. Is Granderson a Willie Mays out there? Of course not, but he's not a Dick Stuart type either. Stuart, for those who don't know, was a Red Sox first baseman known as Dr Strangeglove. His teammates would shake hands with him saying, "Dick, give me some steel." If you've watched a lot of Yankee games this year, you can tell that Granderson's biggest problem is the murderous sun glare in Yankee Stadium's center field. And here's a couple of stats for the sabermetric guys to chew on: Grandy has 3 errors (10th in the majors) and 6 assists (6th in the majors).
***THEY SAID IT***
Kei Igawa, the free-agent disaster of a Yankees pitcher demoted to the minors, is out of mind but certainly not out of sight. "Yeah, he's passed me on the drive down to Trenton," GM Brian Cashman told The New York Times. "He drives faster than his fastball." -- Dwight Perry
The best reason to keep going to Mets games: "Because when you call up to order tickets and ask them what time the game starts, the clerk says, 'What time can you be here?' " A comment made by a reader to the NY Times
The PGA tournament first round leader is actually the #2 ranked American golfer in the world. Yeah, I didn’t know his name either.’ -- Janice Hough
"The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association has kicked a member off the U.S. Ski Team after he urinated on a fellow airline passenger. Imagine running afoul of the rules of the U.S. Snowboard Association. We're not exactly talking military school here." -- Brad Dickson
CP-
Mariano Rivera has been so good for so long, that whenever the media rates closers, they don't even include Rivera anymore. Why? Because he's so far above the rest, you can't compare them to him, so it comes down to "The best of the rest."
You look at some of his stats and it's impossible to register how good he's been for so long. He's in his 15th year as the Yankees closer and in only ONE of those years did he have less than 30 saves (2002 - 28 saves). Now he's had three bad outings in a row. We've seen blips before, but you knew they were just a little bump in the road but he still looked overpowering. But recently, he's looked all too hittable. So when the Yanks try to turn games into six inning affairs, it's worthless if the ninth inning isn't lights-out, game-over.
I've never worried before - now I am.
***EXCUSE ME?***
The MVP discussion starts to become hot and heavy this time of the year, with the so-called favorite changing every few days. Adrian Gonzales seemed like a lock a month ago, then it was Jacob Ellsbury and now Curtis Granderson is being noticed. Of course, Jose Bautista has had his backers all year. This year, however, the analysts seem to favor players on winning teams, unlike past years when all they looked at were stats. I have always felt that a player on a last place team may be the best player around, but he isn't helping his team win...because they can't win. I know, I know, it's not his fault, but consider this: the media is very quick to point out that not everyone is capable of handling playing in New York or Boston, where the pressure to win is enormous. The Yanks never made a serious run at Zack Greinke from Kansas City, because they gave a lot of credence to the thought that he couldn't handle New York. Okay, let's assume the 'winning team' theory has merit and move on to another thought.
How much does defense play into your vote for MVP? Two players with basically equal stats, one a left fielder, the other a shortstop. Who is more valuable? I would think you should lean toward the shortstop. How about two third basemen with equal stats? Then defense could be influential.
But here's my point: How do you distinguish a good fielder from a bad one? I don't mean two fairly equal fielders, I mean one outstanding and one terrible one. Ah, the sabermetric advocates have the answer. After a 'few' assumptions and thousands of numbers, they have come up with a number for you: The Defensive Runs Saved statistic. Think about this one. How can they actually put a number on how many runs a fielder can "save" in a season? There has to be so many 'IFs' involved in this formula, that the first paragraph explaining it has got to have 50 of them. They claim it takes into account everything, from the type of pitchers on his team (fly ball vs. ground ball) to the size of his field in the outfield.
Steve Berthiaume, of ESPN wrote an article explaining this and even he seems to have trouble believing his own numbers: "As with any defensive metric, there is always a subjective element." Of course, with all these sabermetric numbers, they skip over this quickly and NEVER tell you what it is. This new stat has determined that Curtis Granderson is the "worst" defensive centerfielder in baseball. Is Granderson a Willie Mays out there? Of course not, but he's not a Dick Stuart type either. Stuart, for those who don't know, was a Red Sox first baseman known as Dr Strangeglove. His teammates would shake hands with him saying, "Dick, give me some steel." If you've watched a lot of Yankee games this year, you can tell that Granderson's biggest problem is the murderous sun glare in Yankee Stadium's center field. And here's a couple of stats for the sabermetric guys to chew on: Grandy has 3 errors (10th in the majors) and 6 assists (6th in the majors).
***THEY SAID IT***
Kei Igawa, the free-agent disaster of a Yankees pitcher demoted to the minors, is out of mind but certainly not out of sight. "Yeah, he's passed me on the drive down to Trenton," GM Brian Cashman told The New York Times. "He drives faster than his fastball." -- Dwight Perry
The best reason to keep going to Mets games: "Because when you call up to order tickets and ask them what time the game starts, the clerk says, 'What time can you be here?' " A comment made by a reader to the NY Times
The PGA tournament first round leader is actually the #2 ranked American golfer in the world. Yeah, I didn’t know his name either.’ -- Janice Hough
"The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association has kicked a member off the U.S. Ski Team after he urinated on a fellow airline passenger. Imagine running afoul of the rules of the U.S. Snowboard Association. We're not exactly talking military school here." -- Brad Dickson
CP-
Thursday, August 11, 2011
BACK ON TRACK
***YANKS AND NOVA WIN 9-3***
It appears the Yanks have found starter #2 in Ivan Nova. The crack Yankee broadcasters had it right: not only were his pitches crisp and accurate, but his attitude and body language were overpowering, too. If nothing else, his performances may be inspiring Phil Hughes to pitch better also. The threat of the bullpen, or even worse, Scranton, hangs over Hughes head.
Granderson hit two last night to give the Yanks a pair of 30+ home run hitters. The last time that happened was 50 years ago, with the M&M boys. Granderson & Teixeira have accomplished it in game #115. Put this in perspective: Mantle and Maris reached that level in game #84, 31 games earlier! Pretty scary. As of last night, Granderson is hitting .275. I remember when Maris was threatening Ruth's record, Roger was chided all year because he was hitting "only" .270 - .280. Yet, we're not hearing anything like that now, but Grandy's not threatening any record, either.
A-Rod is scheduled to rehab in the minors starting Friday and is supposed to be back up on Monday, which should bring about changes to the roster and the lineup. Somebody has to go down, probably one of the pitchers. I'm guessing Noesi. If Girardi follows his usual form, Gardner will be batting ninth from now on. I'd like to see Gardner lead off with Jeter hitting 2nd and moving the rest of the lineup down one spot (Granderson 3rd, Tex 4th, A-Rod 5th, etc.).
***YOU CAN'T DO THAT***
The latest rumor is that Toronto is stealing signs by having a guy in the stands holding up his hands for a fastball and not doing anything when the pitch is a curve. Which brings to mind two questions: One, how does he get the signal so fast and can he signal the batter fast enough to do him some good? Two, if it works, why isn't Toronto undefeated at home, or least hitting about .450 as a team? And how much real help is it? even if the batters know what's coming, they still have to hit it and hit it away from fielders. This is silly...as these people proved:
http://www.torontosun.com/2011/08/10/is-there-a-man-in-white
Just an update: Yesterday, Granderson hit two home runs, so far today, he has hit into two inning-ending double plays. What have you done for us lately?
CP-
It appears the Yanks have found starter #2 in Ivan Nova. The crack Yankee broadcasters had it right: not only were his pitches crisp and accurate, but his attitude and body language were overpowering, too. If nothing else, his performances may be inspiring Phil Hughes to pitch better also. The threat of the bullpen, or even worse, Scranton, hangs over Hughes head.
Granderson hit two last night to give the Yanks a pair of 30+ home run hitters. The last time that happened was 50 years ago, with the M&M boys. Granderson & Teixeira have accomplished it in game #115. Put this in perspective: Mantle and Maris reached that level in game #84, 31 games earlier! Pretty scary. As of last night, Granderson is hitting .275. I remember when Maris was threatening Ruth's record, Roger was chided all year because he was hitting "only" .270 - .280. Yet, we're not hearing anything like that now, but Grandy's not threatening any record, either.
A-Rod is scheduled to rehab in the minors starting Friday and is supposed to be back up on Monday, which should bring about changes to the roster and the lineup. Somebody has to go down, probably one of the pitchers. I'm guessing Noesi. If Girardi follows his usual form, Gardner will be batting ninth from now on. I'd like to see Gardner lead off with Jeter hitting 2nd and moving the rest of the lineup down one spot (Granderson 3rd, Tex 4th, A-Rod 5th, etc.).
***YOU CAN'T DO THAT***
The latest rumor is that Toronto is stealing signs by having a guy in the stands holding up his hands for a fastball and not doing anything when the pitch is a curve. Which brings to mind two questions: One, how does he get the signal so fast and can he signal the batter fast enough to do him some good? Two, if it works, why isn't Toronto undefeated at home, or least hitting about .450 as a team? And how much real help is it? even if the batters know what's coming, they still have to hit it and hit it away from fielders. This is silly...as these people proved:
http://www.torontosun.com/2011/08/10/is-there-a-man-in-white
Just an update: Yesterday, Granderson hit two home runs, so far today, he has hit into two inning-ending double plays. What have you done for us lately?
CP-
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Tuesday, August 09, 2011
AS LEAST THEY DIDN'T LOSE TODAY
***YANKEES UPDATE***
Was the fact that the Yanks used Hughes out of the bullpen Sunday, a harbinger of things to come? I think so. Was that fact that he was ineffective somewhat worrisome? Absolutely. For the last month, the sports writers have been asking who will be the number 2 starter for the Yanks. So far, it looks like Ivan Nova to me. Actually, the bigger question should be: do we have to assign a number to AJ Burnett? {I remind you all of a discussion from last year, when Annie-O said they should make AJ a position player and I replied that his best position was sitting down.}
Word out of NY is that Posada has been benched and DH duties will be split by Andruw Jones and Eric Chavez. Why would you not want Chavez at third base, at least until A-Rod returns? The Yanks are hoping that A-Rod will rejoin the team early next week or maybe even by the weekend. Buster Olney speculates that the Yanks may bring up Jesus Montero right away as a part-time DH and part-time catcher, but that means sending someone down and I can't see that happening.
Obviously, he'll be there in September along with Benuelos, the left hander. I'd like to see that first baseman, Jorge Vasquez . I really like his swing. He currently has 27 homers and 82 RBIs while hitting .251. Montero has 11 homers and 50 RBIs in approximately the same number of games.
The Rochester paper says that Phil Hughes is the starter for tonight's game against the Angels. ESPN says the starter is going to be AJ Burnett and Buster Olney says it's going to be Ivan Nova. Maybe it'll be Posada. He's not doing anything.
I thought my Mother carried her ethnic heritage too far, but apparently my dentist has the same zeal. I learned today that he almost fired his dental assistant because she cuts her spaghetti with a fork instead of rolling it up. Better be careful, Karen. That's as bad as putting sugar in your marinara sauce.
***THEY SAID IT***
"The NFL will beging random testing for HGH in the new collective-bargaining agreement: "Know what that means? The players have found something better." -- Janice Hough
"Jennifer Pharr Davis broke the mark for hiking the entire Appalachian Trail: The previous record was held by Gov. Sanford's wife, looking for Gov. Sanford." -- Bill Littlejohn
"According to a recent study, less intelligent women tend to want more sex. This is good news to Alex Rodriguez, who is dating Cameron Diaz." -- RJ Currie
"A woman working at a Dunkin' Donuts was apparently a prostitute. It takes a lot of guts to be a hooker in a place full of cops." -- David Letterman
"It's President Obama's birthday. I can't believe it's been 50 years since his mother forged his birth certificate." -- Jimmy Kimmel
CP-
Was the fact that the Yanks used Hughes out of the bullpen Sunday, a harbinger of things to come? I think so. Was that fact that he was ineffective somewhat worrisome? Absolutely. For the last month, the sports writers have been asking who will be the number 2 starter for the Yanks. So far, it looks like Ivan Nova to me. Actually, the bigger question should be: do we have to assign a number to AJ Burnett? {I remind you all of a discussion from last year, when Annie-O said they should make AJ a position player and I replied that his best position was sitting down.}
Word out of NY is that Posada has been benched and DH duties will be split by Andruw Jones and Eric Chavez. Why would you not want Chavez at third base, at least until A-Rod returns? The Yanks are hoping that A-Rod will rejoin the team early next week or maybe even by the weekend. Buster Olney speculates that the Yanks may bring up Jesus Montero right away as a part-time DH and part-time catcher, but that means sending someone down and I can't see that happening.
Obviously, he'll be there in September along with Benuelos, the left hander. I'd like to see that first baseman, Jorge Vasquez . I really like his swing. He currently has 27 homers and 82 RBIs while hitting .251. Montero has 11 homers and 50 RBIs in approximately the same number of games.
The Rochester paper says that Phil Hughes is the starter for tonight's game against the Angels. ESPN says the starter is going to be AJ Burnett and Buster Olney says it's going to be Ivan Nova. Maybe it'll be Posada. He's not doing anything.
I thought my Mother carried her ethnic heritage too far, but apparently my dentist has the same zeal. I learned today that he almost fired his dental assistant because she cuts her spaghetti with a fork instead of rolling it up. Better be careful, Karen. That's as bad as putting sugar in your marinara sauce.
***THEY SAID IT***
"The NFL will beging random testing for HGH in the new collective-bargaining agreement: "Know what that means? The players have found something better." -- Janice Hough
"Jennifer Pharr Davis broke the mark for hiking the entire Appalachian Trail: The previous record was held by Gov. Sanford's wife, looking for Gov. Sanford." -- Bill Littlejohn
"According to a recent study, less intelligent women tend to want more sex. This is good news to Alex Rodriguez, who is dating Cameron Diaz." -- RJ Currie
"A woman working at a Dunkin' Donuts was apparently a prostitute. It takes a lot of guts to be a hooker in a place full of cops." -- David Letterman
"It's President Obama's birthday. I can't believe it's been 50 years since his mother forged his birth certificate." -- Jimmy Kimmel
CP-
Monday, August 08, 2011
I DON'T KNOW WHICH WAS WORSE...
...Rivera blowing the save and the Yanks losing in 10 innings, or having to listen to 'Booby' Valentine for over 4 hours. The Sox won, and maybe they should have, since we've been told from day one how they may be the best team in baseball. Yankee fan or Red Sox fan it doesn't matter - watching these teams go up against one another is like watching two heavyweights slug it out with each other for 10 rounds.
Garcia pitched with guile, cunning and the guts of a 2nd story man and sent a number of Red Sox hitters walking back to the dugout shaking their head. Beckett was more conventional, overpowering Yankee batters with fast balls and off-speed stuff. You had to marvel at both. The Sox may ultimately win out, but they have to know the Yanks won't go down easily.
I wonder if ESPN will ever find a trio of announcers that can competently analyze the game and do play-by-play. Orel Hershiser could put John Flaherty to sleep and who is Dan Shulman? As far is Booby goes, I haven't heard such drivel since Joe Morgan was making our ears bleed last year. I think Valentine believes his job is to disagree with every decision that is made on the field: "Did you see what they did here? That's just wrong." Thanks for that insight, Booby. Then he explains HIS way of doing things, and that's usually thoughtless at best, and silly any way you look at it. Case in point: In the bottom of the ninth, with no outs, man on second and down a run, the obvious play is to have the batter bunt. When Ellsbury does bunt, and a lousy one at that, Rivera is quickly off the mound to field it. He looks toward third, but no one is there, so he goes to first. Valentine couldn't wait to say that Nunez was "out of position" and "there was no reason for him to be in that close." Yeah, right. He was supposed to stay at third and HOPE that the bunt is terrible and right at Rivera instead of down the line, like it's supposed to be. The ONLY way you try for the man in that situation, is to use the 'wheel play,' with the third baseman charging and the shortstop covering third. Now if Valentine had said that, and criticized the Yanks for not doing that, he'd have a point. But no, he had to point out what HE thought was a mistake. Give him credit, though, he tried to anticipate moves both teams might try or the type of pitch that would be thrown. He was usually wrong, of course, but that helped because you could count on that.
It was irritating to watch Sox lefty, Franklin Morales, balk every time he threw to first. The Yanks complained, uselessly, of course, and the announcers picked up on that, but they refused to take a stand on the move. Was it a balk or not? they never said. Their response was to say here's the rule, and explain it in detail. Hershiser went on about drawing a line from the rubber to the running box down the foul line and how the pitcher has to step inside that line to meet the 45 degrees that is allowed. Interesting, but totally wrong. The rule actually says the pitcher has to step TOWARDS first base, not within 45 degrees. Also, once the lefty's right leg goes behind his left leg when starting his motion, he HAS to throw to the plate. They never mentioned that, and Morales violated that one, too.
I loved how Valentine waxed on about how Beckett took 30-35 seconds between pitches and that the umpires never enforced the 12 second rule. "Either enforce it or eliminate the rule," he said. This from a guy who snuck back into the dugout wearing a fake mustache when he was a manager after being thrown out by the umpire. Should we eliminate that rule too, Valentine?
I read this in Dwight Perry's column last night.
"In Friday's 1-0 loss to the Angels, the Mariners had a runner picked off first, another caught trying to steal second and yet another nabbed rounding third too far. Just one foolhardy tag at home, and the M's would've gotten picked for the cycle."
What made this interesting to me, was that this once happened to me exactly as described. Playing in a fast-pitch soft ball game, I made outs at 1st, 2nd and 3rd all in one game, earning me the derisive nickname of "Flash." Thanks for bringing back a painful memory, Dwight.
CP-
Garcia pitched with guile, cunning and the guts of a 2nd story man and sent a number of Red Sox hitters walking back to the dugout shaking their head. Beckett was more conventional, overpowering Yankee batters with fast balls and off-speed stuff. You had to marvel at both. The Sox may ultimately win out, but they have to know the Yanks won't go down easily.
I wonder if ESPN will ever find a trio of announcers that can competently analyze the game and do play-by-play. Orel Hershiser could put John Flaherty to sleep and who is Dan Shulman? As far is Booby goes, I haven't heard such drivel since Joe Morgan was making our ears bleed last year. I think Valentine believes his job is to disagree with every decision that is made on the field: "Did you see what they did here? That's just wrong." Thanks for that insight, Booby. Then he explains HIS way of doing things, and that's usually thoughtless at best, and silly any way you look at it. Case in point: In the bottom of the ninth, with no outs, man on second and down a run, the obvious play is to have the batter bunt. When Ellsbury does bunt, and a lousy one at that, Rivera is quickly off the mound to field it. He looks toward third, but no one is there, so he goes to first. Valentine couldn't wait to say that Nunez was "out of position" and "there was no reason for him to be in that close." Yeah, right. He was supposed to stay at third and HOPE that the bunt is terrible and right at Rivera instead of down the line, like it's supposed to be. The ONLY way you try for the man in that situation, is to use the 'wheel play,' with the third baseman charging and the shortstop covering third. Now if Valentine had said that, and criticized the Yanks for not doing that, he'd have a point. But no, he had to point out what HE thought was a mistake. Give him credit, though, he tried to anticipate moves both teams might try or the type of pitch that would be thrown. He was usually wrong, of course, but that helped because you could count on that.
It was irritating to watch Sox lefty, Franklin Morales, balk every time he threw to first. The Yanks complained, uselessly, of course, and the announcers picked up on that, but they refused to take a stand on the move. Was it a balk or not? they never said. Their response was to say here's the rule, and explain it in detail. Hershiser went on about drawing a line from the rubber to the running box down the foul line and how the pitcher has to step inside that line to meet the 45 degrees that is allowed. Interesting, but totally wrong. The rule actually says the pitcher has to step TOWARDS first base, not within 45 degrees. Also, once the lefty's right leg goes behind his left leg when starting his motion, he HAS to throw to the plate. They never mentioned that, and Morales violated that one, too.
I loved how Valentine waxed on about how Beckett took 30-35 seconds between pitches and that the umpires never enforced the 12 second rule. "Either enforce it or eliminate the rule," he said. This from a guy who snuck back into the dugout wearing a fake mustache when he was a manager after being thrown out by the umpire. Should we eliminate that rule too, Valentine?
I read this in Dwight Perry's column last night.
"In Friday's 1-0 loss to the Angels, the Mariners had a runner picked off first, another caught trying to steal second and yet another nabbed rounding third too far. Just one foolhardy tag at home, and the M's would've gotten picked for the cycle."
What made this interesting to me, was that this once happened to me exactly as described. Playing in a fast-pitch soft ball game, I made outs at 1st, 2nd and 3rd all in one game, earning me the derisive nickname of "Flash." Thanks for bringing back a painful memory, Dwight.
CP-
Sunday, August 07, 2011
THAT WAS JUST TOO PAINFUL
***YANKS AND SOX TIED AGAIN***
There have been other games when CC didn't seem to have his best stuff, but he found a way to hang on until the Yanks put a big number on the board. Obviously, you can't get away with that against a heavy-hitting team like the Red Sox. The big surprise was that they could only muster three runs off of Lackey. Things looked good going in, the Yankee's ace against an inconsistent John Lackey, with the hopes of a two game lead and being assured of leaving Boston in first place. Didn't happen. Tonight, it's Boston's #1 starter, Beckett, against another NY retread, Freddie Garcia. Edge to Boston, but who knows? Nothing has gone according to plan so far.
***TIME FOR MORE CRAZINESS***
"The NY Post has learned that the Yankees have put A.J. Burnett, Rafael Soriano and Jorge Posada on trade waivers. That doesn't mean any of the trio will be dealt. However, they are eligible to be claimed by other clubs within 48 hours. If multiple clubs claim them the team with the lower winning percentage is awarded the claim and can talk trade with the Yankees. The Yankees can pull the players back, but if they put them out a second time and they get claimed the player goes to the team making the claim."
I wouldn't put too much thought into this. Burnett and Soriano make too much money for anyone to trade for them and Posada is a 10 & 5 man, which means he can't be traded without his permission.
***THEY SAID IT***
"In the history of the world, has anybody like Dan Uggla ever hit in 27 straight games and only raised his batting average to .216?" -- Mike Lupica
"The Yankees doubleheader the other night began without a third base bag. Apparently Alex Rodriguez lost it the night before in a poker game" -- Brad Dickson
"He's lost his wife, his swing coach, his caddie and, for a while at least, his golf touch. Add a moonshine bust and a runaway dog, and Tiger Woods could be a Country and Western song." -- Dwight Perry
"So MLB has warned players against using a spray made from deer antlers. So how will they test for it? Play “Bambi” in the clubhouse and see who starts crying uncontrollably?" -- Janice Hough
"The play-by-play man for the troubled Lake County Fielders minor league baseball team resigned in the middle of the game. This is when you know an organization has problems: "The ball is popped up to right ... you know, this job stinks, I'm outta here." -- Brad Dickson
CP-
There have been other games when CC didn't seem to have his best stuff, but he found a way to hang on until the Yanks put a big number on the board. Obviously, you can't get away with that against a heavy-hitting team like the Red Sox. The big surprise was that they could only muster three runs off of Lackey. Things looked good going in, the Yankee's ace against an inconsistent John Lackey, with the hopes of a two game lead and being assured of leaving Boston in first place. Didn't happen. Tonight, it's Boston's #1 starter, Beckett, against another NY retread, Freddie Garcia. Edge to Boston, but who knows? Nothing has gone according to plan so far.
***TIME FOR MORE CRAZINESS***
"The NY Post has learned that the Yankees have put A.J. Burnett, Rafael Soriano and Jorge Posada on trade waivers. That doesn't mean any of the trio will be dealt. However, they are eligible to be claimed by other clubs within 48 hours. If multiple clubs claim them the team with the lower winning percentage is awarded the claim and can talk trade with the Yankees. The Yankees can pull the players back, but if they put them out a second time and they get claimed the player goes to the team making the claim."
I wouldn't put too much thought into this. Burnett and Soriano make too much money for anyone to trade for them and Posada is a 10 & 5 man, which means he can't be traded without his permission.
***THEY SAID IT***
"In the history of the world, has anybody like Dan Uggla ever hit in 27 straight games and only raised his batting average to .216?" -- Mike Lupica
"The Yankees doubleheader the other night began without a third base bag. Apparently Alex Rodriguez lost it the night before in a poker game" -- Brad Dickson
"He's lost his wife, his swing coach, his caddie and, for a while at least, his golf touch. Add a moonshine bust and a runaway dog, and Tiger Woods could be a Country and Western song." -- Dwight Perry
"So MLB has warned players against using a spray made from deer antlers. So how will they test for it? Play “Bambi” in the clubhouse and see who starts crying uncontrollably?" -- Janice Hough
"The play-by-play man for the troubled Lake County Fielders minor league baseball team resigned in the middle of the game. This is when you know an organization has problems: "The ball is popped up to right ... you know, this job stinks, I'm outta here." -- Brad Dickson
CP-
Saturday, August 06, 2011
ONE DOWN, TWO TO GO
***HEROES AND GOATS***
When the final score is 3-2, you usually don't have to point too many fingers afterward, and that's true here. This game came down to two decisions: one by Girardi and one by Francona. I wrote previously that I thought the difference would be in the bullpens and it turned out that way, at least for this game.
##THE HERO## Girardi, trusting his bullpen, made a very gutsy, unlikely move by bringing in left-hander Boone Logan to face the lefty hitting Adrian Gonzales in the fifth inning, with the bases loaded, two outs and the Sox poised to put the game away. As the song goes, it was one, two three strikes, you're out... and the threat was A-Gon, so to speak. Logan has been shaky at best all year, but he was on point last night. It was probably the inspiration the Yanks needed to scratch together what proved to be the winning rally.
##THE GOAT## In the top of the sixth, you could sense that Lester was tiring, but it appeared that Francona did not have the trust in his bullpen that Girardi had. Even though Lester induced Cano to bounce into a bases loaded double play, Swisher followed with a clutch double past a diving Youkilis, driving in what proved to be the winning run. With Soriano, Robertson and Rivera taking turns out of the pen, it was game over.
***AROUND THE LEAGUE***
In an effort to spark some interest in their league, the Phillies and Giants instigated a full two-team brawl after Shane Victorino was intentionally hit with a pitch. Fun little melee, but I doubt it will result in a NY-Boston like feud.
The Giants continue to falter, losing 7 of their last 10, and only Seattle has scored less runs. Pittsburgh's losing streak has reached 8 games while Milwaukee has won 9 or their last 10.
Atlanta's Dan Uggla has now hit in 26 straight games, which is getting national attention. Keep in mind, however, he is not even half-way to Dimaggio's record.
***WHY RUIN A GOOD THING?***
Now, even NY writers are advocating a playoff system that would make finishing first in the AL East almost mandatory. If the wild card team has to win a one-game playoff to get into the postseason, they would fight harder to win their division. Mike Vacarro says that as interesting as this Yankee-Red Sox series is, it really means nothing because no doubt they will both make the playoffs. But if one of them has to use their ace to win one game to proceed, that would put them at a distinct disadvantage, so winning the division becomes all important. Games between Boston and New York are already played at such a high level of intensity, does it really need another incentive. What more do they want? Beheadings?
If the these two teams are so much better thatn everyone else, why haven't they won every single World Series since 1990? They haven't even been IN every WS since then.
How about if the city whose team that loses the division, has to permanently fire a sportswriter from that city? Not such a good idea now, eh Mike?
***THEY SAID IT***
"After the opening round of the Bridgestone Invitational, an ESPN analyst said Tiger's putter was outstanding. Isn't that what got Woods into trouble in the first place?" -- RJ Currie
Speaking of asses:
"House Speaker John Boehner is urging Republicans to support his bill by telling them to get their asses in line. That's what he said -- get their asses in line. This is typical Washington -- if it's not Obama kissing Wall Street's ass, it's Boehner kicking ass, or it's Congressman David Wu grabbing ass. They're all a bunch of asses." -- Jay Leno
It isn't sports, but...
"A peacock escaped from the Central Park Zoo and wandered around the city. Either that or I just saw a pigeon on his way to a gay pride parade." -- Jimmy Fallon
CP-
When the final score is 3-2, you usually don't have to point too many fingers afterward, and that's true here. This game came down to two decisions: one by Girardi and one by Francona. I wrote previously that I thought the difference would be in the bullpens and it turned out that way, at least for this game.
##THE HERO## Girardi, trusting his bullpen, made a very gutsy, unlikely move by bringing in left-hander Boone Logan to face the lefty hitting Adrian Gonzales in the fifth inning, with the bases loaded, two outs and the Sox poised to put the game away. As the song goes, it was one, two three strikes, you're out... and the threat was A-Gon, so to speak. Logan has been shaky at best all year, but he was on point last night. It was probably the inspiration the Yanks needed to scratch together what proved to be the winning rally.
##THE GOAT## In the top of the sixth, you could sense that Lester was tiring, but it appeared that Francona did not have the trust in his bullpen that Girardi had. Even though Lester induced Cano to bounce into a bases loaded double play, Swisher followed with a clutch double past a diving Youkilis, driving in what proved to be the winning run. With Soriano, Robertson and Rivera taking turns out of the pen, it was game over.
***AROUND THE LEAGUE***
In an effort to spark some interest in their league, the Phillies and Giants instigated a full two-team brawl after Shane Victorino was intentionally hit with a pitch. Fun little melee, but I doubt it will result in a NY-Boston like feud.
The Giants continue to falter, losing 7 of their last 10, and only Seattle has scored less runs. Pittsburgh's losing streak has reached 8 games while Milwaukee has won 9 or their last 10.
Atlanta's Dan Uggla has now hit in 26 straight games, which is getting national attention. Keep in mind, however, he is not even half-way to Dimaggio's record.
***WHY RUIN A GOOD THING?***
Now, even NY writers are advocating a playoff system that would make finishing first in the AL East almost mandatory. If the wild card team has to win a one-game playoff to get into the postseason, they would fight harder to win their division. Mike Vacarro says that as interesting as this Yankee-Red Sox series is, it really means nothing because no doubt they will both make the playoffs. But if one of them has to use their ace to win one game to proceed, that would put them at a distinct disadvantage, so winning the division becomes all important. Games between Boston and New York are already played at such a high level of intensity, does it really need another incentive. What more do they want? Beheadings?
If the these two teams are so much better thatn everyone else, why haven't they won every single World Series since 1990? They haven't even been IN every WS since then.
How about if the city whose team that loses the division, has to permanently fire a sportswriter from that city? Not such a good idea now, eh Mike?
***THEY SAID IT***
"After the opening round of the Bridgestone Invitational, an ESPN analyst said Tiger's putter was outstanding. Isn't that what got Woods into trouble in the first place?" -- RJ Currie
Speaking of asses:
"House Speaker John Boehner is urging Republicans to support his bill by telling them to get their asses in line. That's what he said -- get their asses in line. This is typical Washington -- if it's not Obama kissing Wall Street's ass, it's Boehner kicking ass, or it's Congressman David Wu grabbing ass. They're all a bunch of asses." -- Jay Leno
It isn't sports, but...
"A peacock escaped from the Central Park Zoo and wandered around the city. Either that or I just saw a pigeon on his way to a gay pride parade." -- Jimmy Fallon
CP-
Performance Art in Boston
Yankees 3 - Red Sox 2
Justin Pedroia's gulping fish face
Youkilis looking like a Ginzu knife infomercial sliding into second flashing his spikes knee high
Eduardo Nunez knocking Pedroia ass over tea kettle without leading with his spikes
Jerrod Salt(etc.)'s home plate tantrum after being banged out on a perfect pitch by Mariano Rivera
Josh Reddick standing speechless at home plate after taking an identical Mariano pitch to strike out ending the game
Friday, August 05, 2011
THERE'S A 900 LB GORILLA IN THE ROOM...
...and his name is AJ Burnett.
With absolutely outstanding performance by Ivan Nova last night and the masterpiece by Phil Hughes earlier, Burnett looked like a thorn between two roses. The sports media keeps wondering whether the Yanks will send Nova back to Triple-A or perhaps send Hughes to the bullpen, instead of asking the real question: How can they eliminate AJ from the rotation?
Of course, we know that the number one reason is money, AJ being owed some $40 million from now through 2013, and he does have electric stuff, but is that worth risking a season because you have a glaring weakness in your rotation? Of course not. To trade him probably means eating a good size portion of his salary, or to quote Jim Bouton in his book, Ball Four, "Boys, it's a big s**t sandwich, and we're all gonna have to take a bite." I hope the Yankee front office is hungry because we fans are hungry for a World Series ring. I have been an advocate for AJ in the past, mostly because of the quality of his stuff, but I've turned a corner. There have been a lot of talented players in the majors who couldn't turn their talents into winning baseball; I believe now that AJ is one of those.
***YANKS SWEEP THE WHITE SOX***
The beat down was so overwhelming, that even Ozzie couldn't get up the energy to perform. Has he ever gone four straight games with out even making an appearance on the field? The White Sox are not a good team and what they lack in talent, they augment by playing thoughtless baseball. They made a number of mental mistakes in the four games, but frankly, the Yanks didn't really need them.
I mentioned the sad case of Adam Dunn earlier this week, but why doesn't Ozzie do something? Is it really worth having him in the cleanup spot hoping for a worthless solo home run after the game is out of reach? Obviously not.
Here's a thought: trade AJ Burnett for Adam Dunn even up. The Yanks have a good hitting coach--in Scranton.
***THE BIG WEEKEND***
The Yanks and the Sox head for three major skirmishes at Fenway starting tonight. Both team have lined up their starting pitching rotation, but I think the big key is the bullpen. Both teams like to draw out at bats, forcing pitchers to throw an unusually high number of pitches. If this holds true to form, we might see relievers entering the game as early as the 6th inning. If this happens, the Yanks have an advantage with the slightly better bullpen, especially in middle relief. Most analysts say Boston has an advantage because of all their left-handed hitters and the Yanks only have one lefty starter and one lefty reliever, but Colon handles lefties very well and Garcia's "junk" doesn't rely on overpowering anybody, including the catcher. Rivera's history against left-hander hitters is well known. On paper, the Saturday game (Sabathia vs Lackey) looks weighted heavily in the Yanks favor, so tonight's game is the key. It's a must-win for the Yanks.
AROUND THE NATIONAL LEAGUE:
Philly continues to roll, winning 7 in a row, Pittsburgh continues to fall, losing 7 in a row. The Giants lack of offense is starting to hurt them. Arizona is only a half-game back in the NL West.
***THEY SAID IT***
"A man jumped the White House fence Tuesday but was quickly tackled. D.C. oddsmakers immediately installed the Secret Service as 7 ½-point favorites over the Redskins." -- Dwight Perry
"White Sox throw at Adam Dunn's head during batting practice." - SportsPickle.com
"Ford recalled 1.1 million pickups because of faulty gas tanks: "Picture 1.1 million pickups — it looks like the parking lot at a Texas Tech home game." -- Brad Dickson
"Rodriguez is on the disabled list after having knee surgery in July, so he’s got time on his hands and no excuses for not showing up promptly at baseball’s New York offices to answer questions — other than having to leave Cameron Diaz alone on a beach somewhere, which is always a risk." --Norman Chad
CP-
With absolutely outstanding performance by Ivan Nova last night and the masterpiece by Phil Hughes earlier, Burnett looked like a thorn between two roses. The sports media keeps wondering whether the Yanks will send Nova back to Triple-A or perhaps send Hughes to the bullpen, instead of asking the real question: How can they eliminate AJ from the rotation?
Of course, we know that the number one reason is money, AJ being owed some $40 million from now through 2013, and he does have electric stuff, but is that worth risking a season because you have a glaring weakness in your rotation? Of course not. To trade him probably means eating a good size portion of his salary, or to quote Jim Bouton in his book, Ball Four, "Boys, it's a big s**t sandwich, and we're all gonna have to take a bite." I hope the Yankee front office is hungry because we fans are hungry for a World Series ring. I have been an advocate for AJ in the past, mostly because of the quality of his stuff, but I've turned a corner. There have been a lot of talented players in the majors who couldn't turn their talents into winning baseball; I believe now that AJ is one of those.
***YANKS SWEEP THE WHITE SOX***
The beat down was so overwhelming, that even Ozzie couldn't get up the energy to perform. Has he ever gone four straight games with out even making an appearance on the field? The White Sox are not a good team and what they lack in talent, they augment by playing thoughtless baseball. They made a number of mental mistakes in the four games, but frankly, the Yanks didn't really need them.
I mentioned the sad case of Adam Dunn earlier this week, but why doesn't Ozzie do something? Is it really worth having him in the cleanup spot hoping for a worthless solo home run after the game is out of reach? Obviously not.
Here's a thought: trade AJ Burnett for Adam Dunn even up. The Yanks have a good hitting coach--in Scranton.
***THE BIG WEEKEND***
The Yanks and the Sox head for three major skirmishes at Fenway starting tonight. Both team have lined up their starting pitching rotation, but I think the big key is the bullpen. Both teams like to draw out at bats, forcing pitchers to throw an unusually high number of pitches. If this holds true to form, we might see relievers entering the game as early as the 6th inning. If this happens, the Yanks have an advantage with the slightly better bullpen, especially in middle relief. Most analysts say Boston has an advantage because of all their left-handed hitters and the Yanks only have one lefty starter and one lefty reliever, but Colon handles lefties very well and Garcia's "junk" doesn't rely on overpowering anybody, including the catcher. Rivera's history against left-hander hitters is well known. On paper, the Saturday game (Sabathia vs Lackey) looks weighted heavily in the Yanks favor, so tonight's game is the key. It's a must-win for the Yanks.
AROUND THE NATIONAL LEAGUE:
Philly continues to roll, winning 7 in a row, Pittsburgh continues to fall, losing 7 in a row. The Giants lack of offense is starting to hurt them. Arizona is only a half-game back in the NL West.
***THEY SAID IT***
"A man jumped the White House fence Tuesday but was quickly tackled. D.C. oddsmakers immediately installed the Secret Service as 7 ½-point favorites over the Redskins." -- Dwight Perry
"White Sox throw at Adam Dunn's head during batting practice." - SportsPickle.com
"Ford recalled 1.1 million pickups because of faulty gas tanks: "Picture 1.1 million pickups — it looks like the parking lot at a Texas Tech home game." -- Brad Dickson
"Rodriguez is on the disabled list after having knee surgery in July, so he’s got time on his hands and no excuses for not showing up promptly at baseball’s New York offices to answer questions — other than having to leave Cameron Diaz alone on a beach somewhere, which is always a risk." --Norman Chad
CP-
Thursday, August 04, 2011
Good One, Mike
The speculation continues; Hughes or Nova. Meanwhile, A.J. Burnet continues to pile up lousy starts, no wins in July, and unable to last five innings to pick up a win in a game with 18 runs of support. Michael Kay had his best line in months when he commented that even though A.J. got hammered for seven earned runs and gave up hits, 13, to exactly half of the batters he faced, he didn't walk anyone.
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
THAT'S FIVE IN A ROW
***YANKS DOWN SOX, 6-0***
Phil Hughes was outstanding, throwing, if you believe the radar gun, as high as 95 mph. Even if the speed wasn't accurate, Hughes got a lot of swings and misses and the White Sox were never really able to square up on his pitches. Which leaves Girardi and the rest of the Yankee braintrust (?) to figure out who the 5 starters are. The easiest answer is to send Nova back down and wait for Colon or Garcia to break down, which doesn't appear to be imminent.
Teixeira homered from both sides of the plate to set a major league record. I was shocked to hear that Mickey Mantle didn't hold the record. Ken Singleton and company had the answer, though. When The Mick played, there wasn't a lot mixing and matching going on, so if a right-hander started, that's probably what you faced the whole game. Another reason is that it had only been accomplished 6 times before Mick began in 1955, so it was always a big deal and we began to think he was the only one who could do it. He did it 9 more times before someone else accomplished it in 1962. He retired with 10.
It seems strange to me that the game was called in the bottom of the seventh last night, with Chicago behind. I was under the impression that when a game was called because of rain and the home team was behind, the official game reverted back to the last time the home team hit, in this case, the bottom of the sixth, which would have wiped out Tex's second homer. I guess I was wr-r-r-ong (well, that was an effort).
The Yanks have won 5 in a row and are one game back of Boston with a big 3-game series with the other Sox starting Friday.
***HERE WE GO AGAIN***
It seems we had a few 'unwritten rules' broken again this week. Carlos Guillen "posed" after hitting a homer off of Jered Weaver, then flipped the bat and sidestepped down the first base line. posturing at Weaver. While this isn't against the rules, it's not very nice and can result in some sort of retaliation, which it did. Weaver then threw over the head of the next hitter, Alex Avila. Weaver was immediately tossed, has been fined an undisclosed amount and suspended for 6 games. I'm not a fan of such posing and showboating after a homer, but Weaver is a professional and he's got to control himself in that situation. He got himself ejected in a close game against Detroit and will miss at least one start. Not good for a Cy Young candidate on a team fighting for a pennant.
In the same game, Justin Verlander was pitching another no -hitter, when Erick Aybar tried to bunt his way on. It was a close game, but Velander didn't like it. "I know it was only 3-0, so I can understand there are arguments on both sides. But as a pitcher, we call that bush league."
Sorry about your no-hitter, Justin, but the idea is to win games. Aybar is like Brett Gardner. They are not power hitters and speed and bunting is a big part of their games. Unbelievably, Curt Schilling, The Mouth That Roared, agreed, saying that the other team has the obligation to do whatever they can to win the game. He did go on to say that if the score was 10-0, that would be a different story. I guess he missed the Yanks 12-run outburst the other day.
Oddly enough, home plate Hunter Wendelstedt had the best take, "That was stupid -- it was all stupid. Everybody was stupid," he said. I wonder if he was including the umpires.
***HERE AND THERE***
San Fran update: They've lost 5 of 6 since the 'big trade' and Carlos Beltran still has only 1 RBI in those six games. To make matters worse, Arizona is now only one game back in the standing. They say pitching is 90% of the game (or, "90% of this game is half mental" - Yogi), but you've got to score some runs. Only Seattle has scored fewer runs than the Giants, and they're in last place.
The Florida Marlins have scheduled two exhibition games with the Yankees in their soon-to-be-finished stadium next year, on April 1st and 2nd. Wait a minute. Selig is talking about adding teams and games to the playoff schedule, people are complaining about the season ending in November, and now the start of the season is pushed back three days from this year? Who's in charge here? Will someone please introduce Bud Selig to a calendar.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Workers at Crystal Springs Golf Course near Burlingame, Calif., were startled to see a mountain lion passing through in the wee hours Sunday morning. Attention, golfers: If a cougar wants to use your sand trap — let it." -- Dwight Perry
"On a Republican filibuster before the debt-ceiling vote: "A filibuster is when someone talks forever with no real point. Or, as Dick Vitale calls that, 'broadcasting." -- Brad Dickson
"Jets coach Rex Ryan said it was a "leap of faith" to sign Plaxico Burress: "Well, at least he didn't say it was 'a shot in the dark.' " -- Janice Hough
CP-
Phil Hughes was outstanding, throwing, if you believe the radar gun, as high as 95 mph. Even if the speed wasn't accurate, Hughes got a lot of swings and misses and the White Sox were never really able to square up on his pitches. Which leaves Girardi and the rest of the Yankee braintrust (?) to figure out who the 5 starters are. The easiest answer is to send Nova back down and wait for Colon or Garcia to break down, which doesn't appear to be imminent.
Teixeira homered from both sides of the plate to set a major league record. I was shocked to hear that Mickey Mantle didn't hold the record. Ken Singleton and company had the answer, though. When The Mick played, there wasn't a lot mixing and matching going on, so if a right-hander started, that's probably what you faced the whole game. Another reason is that it had only been accomplished 6 times before Mick began in 1955, so it was always a big deal and we began to think he was the only one who could do it. He did it 9 more times before someone else accomplished it in 1962. He retired with 10.
It seems strange to me that the game was called in the bottom of the seventh last night, with Chicago behind. I was under the impression that when a game was called because of rain and the home team was behind, the official game reverted back to the last time the home team hit, in this case, the bottom of the sixth, which would have wiped out Tex's second homer. I guess I was wr-r-r-ong (well, that was an effort).
The Yanks have won 5 in a row and are one game back of Boston with a big 3-game series with the other Sox starting Friday.
***HERE WE GO AGAIN***
It seems we had a few 'unwritten rules' broken again this week. Carlos Guillen "posed" after hitting a homer off of Jered Weaver, then flipped the bat and sidestepped down the first base line. posturing at Weaver. While this isn't against the rules, it's not very nice and can result in some sort of retaliation, which it did. Weaver then threw over the head of the next hitter, Alex Avila. Weaver was immediately tossed, has been fined an undisclosed amount and suspended for 6 games. I'm not a fan of such posing and showboating after a homer, but Weaver is a professional and he's got to control himself in that situation. He got himself ejected in a close game against Detroit and will miss at least one start. Not good for a Cy Young candidate on a team fighting for a pennant.
In the same game, Justin Verlander was pitching another no -hitter, when Erick Aybar tried to bunt his way on. It was a close game, but Velander didn't like it. "I know it was only 3-0, so I can understand there are arguments on both sides. But as a pitcher, we call that bush league."
Sorry about your no-hitter, Justin, but the idea is to win games. Aybar is like Brett Gardner. They are not power hitters and speed and bunting is a big part of their games. Unbelievably, Curt Schilling, The Mouth That Roared, agreed, saying that the other team has the obligation to do whatever they can to win the game. He did go on to say that if the score was 10-0, that would be a different story. I guess he missed the Yanks 12-run outburst the other day.
Oddly enough, home plate Hunter Wendelstedt had the best take, "That was stupid -- it was all stupid. Everybody was stupid," he said. I wonder if he was including the umpires.
***HERE AND THERE***
San Fran update: They've lost 5 of 6 since the 'big trade' and Carlos Beltran still has only 1 RBI in those six games. To make matters worse, Arizona is now only one game back in the standing. They say pitching is 90% of the game (or, "90% of this game is half mental" - Yogi), but you've got to score some runs. Only Seattle has scored fewer runs than the Giants, and they're in last place.
The Florida Marlins have scheduled two exhibition games with the Yankees in their soon-to-be-finished stadium next year, on April 1st and 2nd. Wait a minute. Selig is talking about adding teams and games to the playoff schedule, people are complaining about the season ending in November, and now the start of the season is pushed back three days from this year? Who's in charge here? Will someone please introduce Bud Selig to a calendar.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Workers at Crystal Springs Golf Course near Burlingame, Calif., were startled to see a mountain lion passing through in the wee hours Sunday morning. Attention, golfers: If a cougar wants to use your sand trap — let it." -- Dwight Perry
"On a Republican filibuster before the debt-ceiling vote: "A filibuster is when someone talks forever with no real point. Or, as Dick Vitale calls that, 'broadcasting." -- Brad Dickson
"Jets coach Rex Ryan said it was a "leap of faith" to sign Plaxico Burress: "Well, at least he didn't say it was 'a shot in the dark.' " -- Janice Hough
CP-
Well, Well, Well
Looked what happened in Chicago. Phil Hughes lit up the radar gun and turned in a six inning gem. Once again, it's Ivan Its Been Good to Nova Ya. Forget I said that.
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
Nothing, Nothing, Nothing - A Great Move
Agreeing with Picasner can only mean one thing. Therapy is just around the corner.
No moves before the trading deadline was the smart move for Boy Hank and the CashMan. With Eric Chavez back, ARod's return not far away, and Nunez on the bench, the Yankee infield is just dandy. The outfield is flush. Gardener is playing great, Granderson is on a mission, and Swisher is hitting. As long as Andruw Jones doesn't fall down on his occasional starts, life is good.
Neither catcher can hit .230, Martin is adequate defensively, and Cervelli's play is a constant reminder that Halloween is just three short months away, but who was available?
But pitching, don't they need pitching? Much to the chagrin of every media talking head and gin-addled sports writer, the Yankee staff, by any measure, is among the best in the league. Sabathia is a workhorse, Colon and Garcia continue to pitch well, and who else has 6 guys competing to fill a five man rotation?
The smart move? Get A.J. Burnet a script for valium, move Hughes or Nova into middle relief, and win the division.
Or better yet, A.J. and I could save some money if he's willing to split a session with a local shrink.
DEFINITELY A TOUGH WIN
***Yanks on top 3-2***
They probably couldn't have done it without Adam Dunn. Most first basemen use leather gloves; Adam's appeared to be made out of stone. Ozzie Guillen doesn't look too bright by putting Dunn in two critical spots: first base, where most of the outs are made and batting cleanup when he's 3-73 against lefties. And of course, the Yanks cooperated by hitting 4 of the first 5 balls in his direction and sending one of baseball's top lefties out to the mound. Dunn responded by turning solid ground balls into surprise singles in the field and at the plate by, as Andrew Marchand says, "...swinging like a man trying to kill mosquito's with a sledgehammer."
White Sox GM, Kenny Williams, is considered one of MLB's top execs, but I'm not sure why. He's feuded with his manager, his manager's son and his acquisitions certainly leave something to be desired. Jake Peavy pitched decently last night, but he'll never reach the level of performance that his pay level would lead you to expect. Alex Rios was a joke from the beginning and as for Adam Dunn, well you saw what happened last night.
Big test for Phil Hughes tonight. If he doesn't pitch well, and I mean very well, I think Ivan Nova will take over his spot in the rotation. As I've noted a couple of years ago, without having to pace himself, Hughes could turn it loose for a couple of innings and perhaps be very, very effective in the bullpen.
***AROUND THE LEAGUE***
## It looks like Clay Bucholz is done for the year with a stress fracture in his back. They normally heal by themselves without surgery, but rest is required. It's interesting that doctors claim it is caused by "overuse."
## There is a very interesting race for Cy Young in the American League between Jered Weaver, Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia. Verlander seems to be the fans choice, but Weaver has the best statistics. Even though he'll probably win the most games, Sabathia will end up third.
## It looks like the Pirates bubble has burst. They're now in third place, 5 1/2 games out and only one game over .500.
## The Giants signing of Carlos Beltran isn't looking too good right now. The Giants have lost 4 of 5 since Beltran joined the team. Carlos is 4-21 (.190) with no homers and one RBI.
## A headline on ESPN: "John Lackey got pounded." Awwww.
## A late addition to the name game: Colorado's Jhoulys Chachin. I don't know how to pronounce it, but I'll bet it sounds like a respiratory problem.
## A tee shirt currently being sold in Los Angeles: FRANKRUPTCY!
## Because the Yanks didn't make any George Steinbrenner-like moves, giving up 2 or 3 promising youngsters for one over-the-hill name, the press is saying the Yanks were big losers at the trade deadline. They can't seem to make up their minds how to denigrate NY.
***PICASNER'S RANT***
I'm beginning to change my mind about realignment of the MLB divisions. Since the emphasis for this idea seems to be that the Yanks and Boston keep other deserving AL East teams from making the playoffs, I suggest we exchange the Yanks and Cleveland. The Yanks would certainly win the Central Division and because they would play so many games against them, the rest of the Central probably wouldn't have very good records. But Tampa or Toronto would have better records because they would each play Cleveland 18 times a year. So what would this accomplish? It would add ANOTHER AL East team into the playoffs and eliminate one of the current AL Central teams from getting in. This is dumb enough to make Bud Selig think it will work. Please don't tell him about this.
CP-
They probably couldn't have done it without Adam Dunn. Most first basemen use leather gloves; Adam's appeared to be made out of stone. Ozzie Guillen doesn't look too bright by putting Dunn in two critical spots: first base, where most of the outs are made and batting cleanup when he's 3-73 against lefties. And of course, the Yanks cooperated by hitting 4 of the first 5 balls in his direction and sending one of baseball's top lefties out to the mound. Dunn responded by turning solid ground balls into surprise singles in the field and at the plate by, as Andrew Marchand says, "...swinging like a man trying to kill mosquito's with a sledgehammer."
White Sox GM, Kenny Williams, is considered one of MLB's top execs, but I'm not sure why. He's feuded with his manager, his manager's son and his acquisitions certainly leave something to be desired. Jake Peavy pitched decently last night, but he'll never reach the level of performance that his pay level would lead you to expect. Alex Rios was a joke from the beginning and as for Adam Dunn, well you saw what happened last night.
Big test for Phil Hughes tonight. If he doesn't pitch well, and I mean very well, I think Ivan Nova will take over his spot in the rotation. As I've noted a couple of years ago, without having to pace himself, Hughes could turn it loose for a couple of innings and perhaps be very, very effective in the bullpen.
***AROUND THE LEAGUE***
## It looks like Clay Bucholz is done for the year with a stress fracture in his back. They normally heal by themselves without surgery, but rest is required. It's interesting that doctors claim it is caused by "overuse."
## There is a very interesting race for Cy Young in the American League between Jered Weaver, Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia. Verlander seems to be the fans choice, but Weaver has the best statistics. Even though he'll probably win the most games, Sabathia will end up third.
## It looks like the Pirates bubble has burst. They're now in third place, 5 1/2 games out and only one game over .500.
## The Giants signing of Carlos Beltran isn't looking too good right now. The Giants have lost 4 of 5 since Beltran joined the team. Carlos is 4-21 (.190) with no homers and one RBI.
## A headline on ESPN: "John Lackey got pounded." Awwww.
## A late addition to the name game: Colorado's Jhoulys Chachin. I don't know how to pronounce it, but I'll bet it sounds like a respiratory problem.
## A tee shirt currently being sold in Los Angeles: FRANKRUPTCY!
## Because the Yanks didn't make any George Steinbrenner-like moves, giving up 2 or 3 promising youngsters for one over-the-hill name, the press is saying the Yanks were big losers at the trade deadline. They can't seem to make up their minds how to denigrate NY.
***PICASNER'S RANT***
I'm beginning to change my mind about realignment of the MLB divisions. Since the emphasis for this idea seems to be that the Yanks and Boston keep other deserving AL East teams from making the playoffs, I suggest we exchange the Yanks and Cleveland. The Yanks would certainly win the Central Division and because they would play so many games against them, the rest of the Central probably wouldn't have very good records. But Tampa or Toronto would have better records because they would each play Cleveland 18 times a year. So what would this accomplish? It would add ANOTHER AL East team into the playoffs and eliminate one of the current AL Central teams from getting in. This is dumb enough to make Bud Selig think it will work. Please don't tell him about this.
CP-
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